North Korea claims cruise missile warhead can devastate 15-acre area

North Korea says it tested a cruise missile with a cluster-style warhead capable of striking up to 15 acres, highlighting continued weapons development and regional security concerns. North Korea tested a dispersal warhead for a strategic cruise missile on Nov. 2, 2026, according to the state-run Korean Central News Agency. (KCNA) North Korea says it tested a cruise missile warhead capable of scattering explosives across an area as large as 15 acres, its second reported test of a cluster-type weapon in three days. The North’s Missile Administration carried out the test Monday using a strategic cruise missile equipped with a medium-sized dispersal warhead, according to a Tuesday report by the state-run Korean Central News Agency.

The warhead can destroy an area of 12 to 15 acres, KCNA claimed, without providing further details about the system. The test evaluated the warhead’s destructive power and the cruise missile’s flight characteristics during a vertical strike, according to the report. A dispersal warhead opens over a target to scatter smaller munitions or other agents across a wide area. Monday’s reported launch followed Saturday’s test of a cluster-bomb warhead for a tactical ballistic missile that North Korea claimed could turn an area of 30 to 32 acres “into ashes.” South Korea’s military has declined to confirm the launches, saying cruise missiles can be difficult to